The owner of a California arms store says a federal agency has raided his property in search of the names of customers who purchased gun parts, despite a temporary restraining order preventing it from doing so.

Dimitrios Karras, owner of Ares Armor in Oceanside, says that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) agents have threatened to shut down his business unless he hands over a list of 5,000 customers who bought AR-15 lower receivers, the sale of which the ATF says is illegal.

The receiver is the part of a firearm that houses the operating parts. Ares Armor sold thousands of plastic 80 per cent receivers with colors marking where to drill, making it easier and cheaper to build an AR-15 assault rifle.

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'They said either give us these 5,000 names or we are coming in and taking pretty much anything – which is a huge, huge, huge privacy concern and something we are not willing to do,' he told Fox 40.

Fearful of a government raid on his store, Karras took out a temporary restraining order, preventing ATF agents entering the property.

'They were going to search all of our facilities and confiscate our computer and pretty much shut our business down,' Karras said. 'The government invades our privacy on a daily basis and everyone thinks its ok.'

'This is one of those situations where hopefully the governmental institutions will come in say this is protected and no you’re not taking it from them.'

Gun base: The lower receiver is essentially the frame of the gun and holds all the working parts of the firearm

Deadly weapon: The receivers sold by Ares Armor are used to make the AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle

DIY: Karras holds one of the questionable receivers, which make it easier and cheaper to build your own gun

If the two parties do not reach an agreement, a preliminary hearing has been set for March 20.

'Further, Ares Armor is not a federal firearms licensee, so it cannot legally engage in the business of dealing firearms, let alone ones that do not bear the required manufacturer’s mark and serial number.'

According to a post on the Ares Armor Facebook page, the ATF last night did search Ares Armor's buildings despite the restraining order.

'The ATF did execute a search warrant against all of our buildings today. None of our employees have been detained or arrested... We wholeheartedly believe that they are WRONG in their actions and we will be relentlessly pursuing remedy through the courts.'